Festivals and fun happenings in Kansas City, Kansas

September 4th – October 17th

This is the 44th annual Kansas City Renaissance Festival! Since its debut in September 1977, the Kansas City Renaissance Festival has become one of the biggest festivals in America. It is today one of the largest Renaissance Festivals in the country, with an annual attendance of 200,000. Join in on this long-running tradition by visiting the festival grounds in Bonner Springs, Kan. Make memories with your whole family at the KC Renaissance Festival! Making pirate hats and fairy wands, watching the children's knighting ceremony, maypole dancing, meeting and greeting performers, and more will be among the activities available!  Click for more information HERE.

Weekends at Cider Hill Family Orchard

Cider Hill Family Orchard is a 38-acre orchard with 1500 trees. The Orchard grows 18 different kinds of apples.  Apple season at Cider Hill begins in late July with our first early apple, the Pristine Apple, and ends in early November when Golden Delicious apples are available.  A U-Pick Orchard offers guests the choice of picking their own fruit or having it picked for them. Guests can take the Apple Wagon into the Orchard. Spend as much time as you like exploring the apple trees. More information HERE.

Thursday, September 16th – Sunday, September 19th, 2021 

The American Royal World Series of Barbecue is the largest barbecue contest in the WORLD and the biggest fundraiser for the American Royal!  What we raise that weekend goes straight to our mission of supporting youth and education in agriculture.  Wanna be a part of the smoky goodness?  Our BBQ Festival in Kansas City this September promises to be unlike any you've ever experienced. There will be live music, delicious BBQ, activities for both big and little ones (Saturday is better for the little ones), and a vendor fair you won't want to miss.  We welcome everyone!  Stay tuned for more information, and mark your calendars  More information HERE. 

Thursday, October 7th

The festival will feature live music, a beer and wine garden, local food, raffles, a lawn game tournament, and historical boat rides, as well as a very special guest!  At 4 p.m., the North American B25-D Mitchell Bomber (built in Fairfax during WWII) will fly over the city. at the Fairfax Festival. There will be opportunities to meet the B25-D pilots and….Rosie Riveters.  More information HERE. 

Saturday, October 9th

Taco-Topia is back for another day full of tacos, shopping, prizes, and contests! This is free to attend and they will also have flavor passports for sale that get you 1 meal and 1 souvenir item. In honor of National Hispanic Heritage month, flavor passport ticket proceeds will be donated to a local non-profit, Central Avenue Betterment Association whose mission is to improve the quality of life and economic development of the Central Avenue Area and its territory of operation. More information HERE. 

Turner was a community with no official name from 1856 until 1859. When the first post office was established in 1859, it was dubbed "Farmer." In 1879, it was renamed Turner. "There was a railroad yard in the Argentine; and it sent railroad cars to the Farmer train platform to turn around," "'Take 'er down and turn 'er around,' they'd say. That's the most likely way that Turner was named.

That circular platform was in front of the train station that stood on Kansas at 55th, in Turner's main downtown area. Turner was annexed by Kansas City, Kansas, between late 1965 and early 1966; but the name stuck.

As a friendly reminder, there will not be a parade this year due to the ongoing construction at Turner Middle School. All activities, the car show, craft show, and regular booths, will be at Swartz stadium. No part of the 2021 Turner Days festival will be held at Turner Middle School, or on Steineger Field. Turner Days will be a one day event only - Saturday, October 9, 2021. We hope to resume our regular schedule and regular location in 2022.

Saturday, October 23rd and Sunday, October 24th

The October Hollywood Casino 400 weekend will feature the best drivers from the Xfinity and Cup Series Playoffs vying for a spot in the Championship 4.  Find tickets and more information HERE. 

The celebration changes a little from town to town, but they all have a common principle: the family union. The family gets together to build the altars and offerings, visits the cemetery, and decorates their loved ones’ graves, while doing so, the family welcomes the souls of their ancestors, sits down at the table to share a meal, and reminisces about their memories. 

CELEBRATION PROGRAM:​

Setup - 10:00 am
Face Painting - 11:00am - 6:00pm
High School Marching Bands - 12:00pm - 2:00pm
Art in the Park - 12:00pm - 9:00pm
Offrendas - 12:00pm - 9:00pm
DJ Music - 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Walking Catrinas - 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Live Music - 4:00pm - 6:00pm
Food & Vending - 12:00pm - 9:00pm
Parade - 6:00pm - 7:30pm
All fun ends at 9:00pm